Stop 5: Flacon

The exterior of the Flacon building and its area reveal the scale of the factory.

Welcome to Flacon! 

Flacon is an old glassware plant that underwent its transformation in 2009. It prides itself on being Moscow’s first revitalized industrial zone outside of the historical core of the city (Winzavod exists within the city core). The original aim of Flacon was to develop creative products, education, and civic engagement. The area is bustling with youth projects, others enabling the expression of creative individuals, and socio-cultural initiatives. Flacon takes as its motto: to do what you want. It is today defined by funky shops, designer clothes, and unusual souvenir stores. There are also cafes, cinemas, and even an Ayurvedic spa.

Today, the outside of the factory is decorated with its name and filled with bustling street life.

The name 'Flacon' can be seen all over, reinforcing the brand.

In the 17^th and 18^th centuries, this location was a housed soldier settlement which included a wooden church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In 1843, two Frenchmen started a cosmetic factory and when they needed packaging for the perfumes, they bought the Church in 1864 and built a crystal-glass factory there instead. The site included facilities for processing glass, pottery, and grinding. They employed almost 200 employees who worked 9-10 hours per day (“History of the Bottles”).

During the Soviet era, the buildings survived and were nationalized, becoming the Moscow Crystal Plant (Kalinin). Some of the facilities were damaged by bombs during 1941-1942 but production did not stop. By 1977, the company was fully modernized and automated. However, by 1991, without any public funding, the factory found itself on the verge of bankruptcy. In the 2000s, the factory closed.

One part of the old factory has been transformed to a market, where art and other craft vendors sell.

By the mid-2000s under the management of new owners, the factory was revitalized to provide space for creative companies that wanted to be free. The owners wanted to preserve the legacy of the factory premises and maintained the texture of the red brick buildings, the high ceilings, and the symbolic name of the site. Today, tenants can even own a portion of the plant and spaces available for rent are extremely flexible ranging from business studios to workshops to galleries to showrooms and offices. 

Inside, we can see how the old spaces have been converted to accommodate modern needs while still paying homage to the traditional architecture and industrial touches.

The latest project, Flacon-X gives opportunities to interested individuals to help plan the future development of Flacon. Flacon Village is a future project that will entail the construction of residences and amenities integrated together, not unlike what is being created at the site of ZiL Auto Plant.  

Some of the more radical recent events include a Happy Market, which was a business session for entrepreneurs, a battery recycling project, an Earth Hour celebration, and many flea markets, garage sales, charity fundraisers and concerts.